Scottie's Farm

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FRENZY by Mark King

ISBN 9781846248771

My mate Scotty is a farmer but not in the sense that most people think of. Farms today in my part of the world in East Anglia are like the huge farms you find on the American plains; they are massive, thousands upon thousands of aches of land growing just a couple of crops that are managed by machines employing the latest technology, and very few human beings.

The farm is owned by a company that no doubt is owned by some corporation down the line somewhere, but it's a very efficient operation, and because of this my friend has a life style that farming generations before him could only dream about, although I must state, he has to work his balls off in summer working fourteen hours a day seven days a week during the harvest.

When we pulled into his driveway Scotty was cooking at his barbecue with a beer in hand with his family around him, and after a hug or two of introduction everyone settled down before we went on the grand tour of the work-shops that were behind the tall hedge which separated his work from his home.

There are no animals on this farm just massive automated solar powered storage and drying sheds, plus the work shop and storage areas for the farm vehicles. The first stop was a combined harvester and what a beast this machine was. It was frightening to stand next to it and reminded me of the Triclops machines in Frenzy that so scared humanity. You have to climb a ladder to get into the satellite controlled, air-conditioned, cabin and as I don't like heights I approached it with caution. My children and wife had no qualms, and were soon scrabbling their way up.

My son was over the moon so it was a while before I could drag all the family away so we could carry on with the rest of the tour. The final stop after seeing all the huge machines in the tractor shed was the repair work shop. Inside was a dune-buggy so while Scotty took the children for a drive back to his garden, the wife and I walked back holding hands while the midday sun beat our backs with it welcoming rays.

We feasted once again on barbecue and beer, and after much hugging, and saying our good byes we made out way home.

It was early evening by the time we had arrived back and unpacked the car. To say I was shattered would be an understatement.. When we settled down I thought everyone would be eager to watch the television, but nobody seemed bothered; it was as if using technology is a habit we get into more than a need, so it's something we could soon learn to live without if needed, again just like Daniel's family in Frenzy.

Regards

Mark. 

The final FRENZY

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FRENZY by Mark King
ISBN 9781846248771












Two nights of sleep Hell and my stiff and aching body slumbered slowly from my sleeping bag. After a bit of rocking and rolling I pushed myself up from the air-bed. By now I was so tired I was happy just to be awake. The previous night after the children had laid down there sleepy heads the wife and I spent another enjoyable evening just sitting in the middle of out tent sipping on our drinks as we read. The birds outside sang there good night songs and for a little while I was under the delusion that I could look forward to a peaceful sleep.

There was a gentle breeze that ruffled the canvas when I got up in the morning that gave no clue to the previous nights gale, but by that Sunday morning I felt as if I had been dragged through the gates of Hell, and back. Like I said it doesn't matter because as long as the children are happy, then you love the situation no matter how much your bones ache.

Another fried breakfast of egg and sausage sandwiches swallowed down with steaming hot tea left no one in any rush to start the task of packing up the car, or taking down the tent. We had to be off the site by 10.00 am but as it was now 9.30, and I was still finishing my cup of tea. I had a feeling we wouldn't be heading home for a while.

I had made arrangements to visit a friends house not far from our camp site. My friend is one of those dieing breads these days; he's a farmer. My son is mad about tractors, and always has been, so when I told Scotty about it he invited us to visit his pad so we could all look around his machinery.

At 10.00 the site staff were on their rounds in their electric buggy, a clear sign for all who hadn't started packing to do so now, and there followed two hours of FRENZY as everyone was roped into clearing the tent then packing it all back into the car. Well I should say more like stuff every thing back in, but by twelve we were on the road to Scottie's farm.

As we drove away the beautiful surroundings of Kelling Heath a part of me was glad to be heading back into contact with the real world while part of me had quite quickly settled down to the slower pace of life which in the week before I went I was dreading.

I can't explain what the attraction is of staying in a flimsy building that has no basic facilities while you struggle to even get a few hours sleep in a cold and uncomfortable bed, but as we drove out the entrance the only thing the family was talking about were the plans for our next camping expedition.

Regards

Mark

Frenzy of a night

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FRENZY by Mark King
ISBN 9781846248771













Saturday night I closed my eyes with the sound of the tent ruffling in the wind. I drifted off to sleep quite quickly. Suddenly I was woken up by one all mighty gush of wind that nearly lifted the tent. I closed my eyes hoping it would be a one off, but the wind got stronger. That wasn't the only problem, two days of mixing large amounts of cider and beef also had a similar effect on my stomach, and there was a constant rumbling of wind inside my sleeping bag as well as outside.

The howls of wind kept getting stronger. My daughter had been told by Grand-Dad that he had heard there were gale force winds forecast for parts of the country over the weekend, but the wife and I laughed away her news. Boy o boy were we wrong. Now my wife can sleep for England, a nuclear bomb could go off and she would sleep through it, so when she was also kept awake by the terrible noise of the wind, rustling trees, and flapping tent I thought we may be in for trouble!

A one stage I had visions we would all end up just like in the film The Wizard of Oz when Dorothy is caught inside the wooden shack as it is lifted into the air, and goes around, and around in a cyclone. I expected to wake in the morning, stick my head outside to find I was in a brightly coloured world surrounded by Munchkin men singing in high pitched voices as they danced gaily around the tent.

Dusk duly arrived and I'm still not sure if I got any sleep at all that night; all I know is that once again I was tired, stiff, and in pain. But and as I always say there is always a but, when the children climbed out of their sleeping bags with big wide smiles, oblivious to the previous night storm, and these smiles showed they were still loving every moment of being with their mother and father; once again the memories, frustrations, aches and pains fade away.

Regards

Mark

Camping Frenzy day 2

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FRENZY by Mark King
ISBN 9781846248771












Saturday morning was sunny if a bit damp with a slight chill in the air. I cooked up a breakfast of bacon and egg sandwich's on the single ring gas cooker, and the family settled to enjoy these washed down with a good old cup of tea.

The morning just drifted as I relaxed and read while trying to stop myself from nodding off after my restless nights sleep. The children ran about outside keeping themselves amused especially by chasing off the pigeons that kept inching their way towards our tent looking for scraps to feed from. My daughter came running in shouting 'daddy daddy two of the pigeons are fighting.' I put down the very thick volume I have been fighting my way through over the last couple of weeks, and went outside to investigate. She was right up to a point, there were two pigeons, but they wasn't fighting! One was on top of the other flapping it's wings wildly as it mated with the other. 'Aren't you going to stop it daddy?' I smiled at her and said, 'sometimes it's best to leave nature to it's self.'

I went back to my book. Soon lunch time had arrived but all the family were still stuffed after breakfast, and didn't need anything to eat, especially my son who complained off feeling unwell and was duly sick at the entrance to the tent. I wondered if my cooking the night before had been a cause of it, but he soon perked up. We had planned to go to the beach at Sherringham, but dark clouds came rolling in with the ever increasing wind so we all voted to go to the indoor pool on the site, and spend a few hours there.

It was a good choice as the wind got stronger and brought rain with it. The girls enjoyed the Jacuzzi and steam room why us boys stayed in and around the pool. Afterwards we had a couple of drinks in the bar then returned to our tent as the sun once again appeared. The barbecue was lit once more after much flapping by myself as I went through the same ritual as the previous day, and for a second night running the family feasted on mildly burnt meat.

By this stage I was very tired and looking forward to a good nights sleep. Would my wish come true? You will have to wait for Monday's posting.

Regards

Mark

Camping Frenzy from dusk to dawn

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FRENZY by Mark King
ISBN 9781846248771











The tent was up, the car unpacked, the sun was out, the children were excitedly keeping themselves busy and my thoughts now turned to feeding the family. We had the use of a single ring gas powered cooker or a miniature barbecue. The hunter-gather wild man inside of me picked the barbecue as the wife enquired when supper would be ready. 'Not long' I replied in hope as I desperately tried to get the damn thing to take light.

I felt like a native American Indian as I tired to make a fire with kindle. I used a paper plate to fan the small flames then slowly added the charcoal. I was striped to my shorts with the sun on my back with a steady supply of cider to keep thirst at bay. During small interludes I imagined what life would be like on the wide open plans.

There was no T.V, radio, phone, mobile, laptop, Internet, or newspapers to connect me to the outside world. After much fanning the barbecue coals glowed a thrilling red with energy that spat and spit as the chunky burgers dripped their sizzling juice over them. The family feasted well that evening, and after a refreshing shower the children were tucked up in their sleeping bags while my wife and I sat down to read, and gentle sip on our drinks.

Drops of rain hit the the tent. Nothing at first to cause concern, but as the sun disappeared and the night sky engulfed our flimsy home it became heavier, and heavier. By the time we both retired to our own half of the sleeping area the sound of pitter patter against the canvas had become a constant torrent. By midnight I was worried we could be flooded out of our tent plus I found it hard to get to sleep. When dawn arrived I was tired, stiff and in pain. To say it's uncomfortable when sleeping in a bag even with an air-bed to cushion you is an understatement, and there is nothing worse then having to get up in the middle of the night during torrential rain to go to the toilet that happens to be on the other side of a field.

But that doesn't matter and the memory of a restless night soon melts away when the children wake up with big smiles on their faces that show they are loving every moment of being with their father and mother.

Regards

Mark

Camping Frenzy day 1

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FRENZY by Mark King
ISBN 9781846248771









After posting Friday's blog I set about with helping the wife to pack the family car with all the gear, and supplies we would need for our three day camping adventure. It didn't start well as there were more items to squeeze into the car than could fit in. I thought I knew best what needed to be done, and my wife thought she knew best. After five minutes, and a good tongue lashing from my other half, I decided it would be best to leave her to it while I tidied up the house inside, and double checked that windows were locked etc.

It was now 13.50 and we set off. I drove and by 14.00 the children had been picked up from school only to disappear under a mountain of bags that had been stacked on the back seat as well as crammed into the boot, and every other free piece of space there was in the car, including on my wife's lap as he she held onto the food supplies that were to last until out return on Sunday evening.

The journey took less than an hour. My son had fallen asleep and my daughter only started to moan about her uncomfortable position when we were within reach of our goal. By 15.10 we had booked in at Kelling Heath, and parked at our pitch site.

I think camping sums up life generally; periods of expectation followed by moments of hell interceded with brief fragments of joy, pleasure and  pain, but ultimately a desire to be somewhere else at that given time, preferably by a pool side in some hot, sunny country thousands of miles away.

I experienced hell to start with. I unfolded the tent as a big grey nasty cloud came over the horizon. By this time the front seats of our car were clogged with items we had moved from the boot. When the heavens opened sending down a torrent of water I had no choice, but to stay in the open, and get drenched to the skin. I tried desperately to erect the tent, but next the gods sent a gush of wind so strong the tent decided to take on a new form, as a balloon. It tried to free itself from my clasp so it could disappear over the tree tops, but I fought back with all my strength, and as I bent down to try and hammer in a restraining peg I heard an almighty tearing sound! I looked between my legs and could feel the air on my buttocks (and see them too) as it dawned on me I had a massive hole in my favourite jeans. What made it worse was that other than a pair of shorts, and swimming trunks, they were all I had to wear.

I lost it.

I threw the hammer on the floor and stood there just like Charlton Heston in the film 'The Planet of The Apes' when near the end of it he screams out to humanity while standing under the half buried Statute of Liberty; "what have you done?"

As quick as the cloud appeared it was gone and the sun came out, my shorts went on, and hell disappeared as a small fragment of joy, and pleasure, seeped through me when I stood back, and surveyed the newly erected tent that was to be home for the King family for the next three days. As I wrote at the beginning these are only brief moments until the pain comes, but that story is for Wednesday's blog.

Regards


Mark King

The Long Weekend

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FRENZY by Mark King
ISBN 9781846248771









By 2pm today my car will be packed, the children will have been picked up early from school, and the family should be on its way to www.kellingheath.co.uk as we are off for a long weekend of camping. I should be excited but my enthusiasm has faded over the last week alongside the deteriorating weather.

I've been on a bit of a downer this week as my mood clouded over as quickly as the grey and blacks that came rolling in with the chilly wind. I couldn't figure out why? My new book Frenzy has reached the top 5% Kindle sellers on www.amazon.co.uk. It's now on sale throughout the world via various web based sites, and it's been getting excellent reviews on sites like www.goodreads.com and others including some on Amazon in America. There have been excellent articles printed about the book in the media at www.massmovement.co.uk and www.icenimagazine.co.uk plus the local media like Paris Life, Thorpe Directory, and the Town Council Magazine. If you type in Frenzy by Mark King into Google search a whole three pages pop up connected to the book so I've started to make my presence felt on the Internet. I've even pushed Mark King from the band Level 42 onto the fourth page, wow.

The closer I got to the weekend the deeper my mood became, and I couldn't figure out why! I should be full of excitement at the prospect of getting away from it all for a whole three days with no T.V, phone, mobile, newspapers, Internet access, laptop, then it hit me! The thought of loosing contact with the wider world is like a smoker giving up the fags or a drinker going on the waggon.

Will I be able to survive or will it be three days of hell? I will let you know on Monday.

Regards

Mark

The price of anger.

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FRENZY by Mark King
ISBN 9781846248771









What is the price of anger? Well in my case I can tell you it has cost me £97. You see near the end of last week I was on my notebook trying to use the Internet and the damn thing kept freezing on me. For no reason Internet explorer would not work, it would stop, just frozen on the page, and the only way to get it working again was to take out the battery, and reboot it again. After this happened for the third time in ten minutes I got so angry that I shoved the battery pack back into it's place with an outburst of anger that managed to break the little connecting pins inside. So my laptop was fu'ked and so was I as I headed off to the nearest repair shop. The price of repair was £97 so that's what my five seconds of anger cost me.

Although we are all brainwashed into believing technology is making life simpler I get the feeling we are being  fed a lie sometimes. We are told things are so much quicker, like with Internet banking. You spend hours if not days on-line searching all the financial information. Once you pick a bank and filled out the on-line questioner you have to then send off all the forms of identification required, then wait ten days to receive a letter stating you need to send in the original forms of I.D not the printed/photocopied ones. So you send them off and wait then another ten days. This time you get a letter back confirming your account is open and the return of your originals minus your driving licence you sent to them. Hours spent on the phone, waiting, being passed about, at cost to your phone, turns into days of emailing, then months of complaints trying to just get back what is rightfully yours. In the mean time you had to cover the cost of applying for a new licence, and then spend the rest of the year trying to get the bank to admit their mistake in loosing your driving licence, and to cover the cost of this new one. In the mean time you are so feed up, disgusted, and worn down you refuse to use this new account on principle. It's even worse and tens times as distressing when money disappears!

It was so much simpler in the early seventies when I got my first bank account opened for me by my grand-mother as a  gift for my fifth birthday. We walked the fifteen minutes to the local Post Office (now closed) which she had been using for the last thirty years, and while inside chatted happily with the post mistress who had been running this said institution for all of those thirty years. She explained what she wanted and after spending a couple of minutes filling out a simple one page form (no I.D required) she handed over £5, and I was given my first card record book. Simple. We walked back holding hands, relaxed and happy, and by the time we had returned to her home it had only taken us 45 minutes from there and back.

So simple only clever people who are as thick as two short planks can come up with ways to make life complicated.

Regards

Mark

It's just not on.

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FRENZY by Mark King

ISBN 9781846248771

I awoke in the morning wondering what topic I would spill out into the world. There were so many to choice from. It could have been about the wedding reception that me and the wife went to on Friday evening, or about a very interesting chap called Graham who I recently met, and had a drink with on Saturday afternoon down my local, The Fat Cat and Canary www.fatcatcanary.co.uk. I could have talked about my wife's disappointing day at the car boot sale with her mother, and our daughter, as they tried to sell off unwanted goods for a price that was only a fraction of the true cost at which it cost us (I should really say me as I would have paid for the majority of items that were up for sail.)

But and as I say there is always a but, the one thing that I must talk about is the shocking news that the American government has not been only spying on all its own citizens, but has by default been spying on the rest of us in the supposedly free world through our telephone and email traffic.

To say I am disappointed by this is an under-statement.

We like to think we live in a liberated free society in the west where the individual can not be touched by the state unless proved guilty in a court of law. What this message sends out by a government which lays claim to be the defenders of the free world is that no one can be trusted, and that all citizens must be considered a threat.

It's just not on.

What a sad sorry state of affairs this whole situation has turned out to be, and hiding behind the slogan " if you have done nothing wrong you have nothing to fear" is just not on. The most basic rule required for any free society to work is the rule of personal privacy. Why do you think the Nazis made Jews use the star of David? Or why under Stalin no one could move district without the authorities knowledge and permission? Because if you take away someone's personal privacy you have control over them, and control is power. It always has been, always will be, and this grab for power by the security services of not only the U.S.A, but also in most western countries, and especially so in the U.K should be stopped now.

The men in black should have to live by the same rules as the rest of us. The basic rule of law that you are innocent until guilt is proven means we have a right to personal privacy, and if the powers to be think other wise then they should go before a judge, and ask for permission to spy on an individual after proving reasonable suspicion.

What this episode shows is a worrying trend over the last twenty years for the state to think that it owns you. The best example of this I can give is the British Government plans to use your body how they wish after your death for the purpose of organ transplant.

I give blood freely every four months through the blood donor service www.blood.co.uk. I have also freely signed onto the donor register so when I die my organs can be used in transplant for other people who need them. I am also quite freely on the Bone Marrow register so if I can help in saving someone's life with a match then I will.   As I stated I have done this of my own free will, but if I didn't want to do any of these for what ever reason then it's my choice, and the government has not right over my body if I keep within the law, either when I am alive or dead.

So it's just not on. If I stick to the rules then I am entitled to my personal privacy until that is those lying, thieving, corrupt, morally suspect people called the ruling class can prove other wise. If you do nothing then nothing will happen in changing this mindset; so if your not happy about this situation then fire off an email, or write a letter, or wave a placard, or contact the person who represents you at what ever level of government and tell them, 'It's just not on.'

Regards

Mark

P.s If my blog fails to appear again then you know I've been taken down.

Ark

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www.bookguild.co.uk
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twitter@author_king
FRENZY by Mark King
ISBN 9781846248771




Thursday just gone was the birthday of my deceased father-in-law so my wife's immediate family and ours went out for a meal to celebrate his memory. His sudden passing away was one of the finale events which convinced me that deep down the life I had been living was not what I really wanted, and that there was a different path I needed to take.

We are all guilty of plodding through life saying to ourselves I want to do this or I'm going to do that one day, but never quite getting around to doing it.

What ever it is all I can say is go do it, and if it's only a small thing then go do it now. It may just be telling someone near to you that you love them. It may just be an Act of Random Kindness. A quick phone call or text to tell someone you love them or how special they are to you, or just what a good friend they have been. The options are limitless even an Act of Random Kindness to a total stranger.

Just think how good you would feel if a friend phoned you out of the blue for no other reason than to tell you what a good person you are, and to say thanks for being such a brilliant friend. You would spend the rest of the day on a natural high, and so would the person who called you, and if it inspired you to then do the same to someone else then it would spread.

What ever it is you are always putting off until tomorrow then make sure you do it today because tomorrow never comes.

On that note I wish all the readers of my blog not matter where you live in the world (and my new Japanese friends) a relaxing weekend, and may the sun shine for you, your family, friends and neighbours.

Regards

Mark    

Goose fat in your hair

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FRENZY by Mark King
ISBN 9781846248771




On Monday I visited the central library in Norwich www.theforumnorwich.co.uk as I try to do most Mondays. It gets me out of the house and from under the feet of my wife. It also has free wifi access for members along side tens of thousands of books. It's very popular with local immigrants who can communicate with the outside world through the Internet on dozens of free computer terminals on offer. Many different languages can be heard.

I like it. I like the influx of new energy with the vibe it radiates which city's and towns need if they are to stay alive, and keep growing.

I take along my laptop and let the hours slip by as I write, or  read, or just stare out of the window into the bright sunny day letting my imagination flow while the sounds of the world pass by my ear.

Come 2.30pm I leave so I'm ready to pick the children up from school, and then take them swimming. In years to come when they are teenagers and they have stroppy fits asking me;'so what have you ever done for me?' I will be able to reply,'well other than bringing you into this beautiful world, and giving you my untiring love, I also taught you how to swim!'

It was in the changing rooms afterwards that I heard another voice. Not the voice of God, but the voice of my son as he stood there laughing, and singing in front of everyone, 'daddy's putting goose fat in his hair, daddy's putting goose fat in his hair.' The more he sang it the more it the more it made him laugh, so the more he sang it.

Let me explain. last Christmas we had the family around our home for Christmas lunch, and trying to keep it as traditional as possible I purchased a jar of goose fat to roast the potatoes in. The jar and it's contents look very similar to the stuff I put onto my hair after I have washed it. For my children there is no difference and they both take great pleasure in mocking me.

So like I said when they are stroppy teenagers and all moody while everything is my fault, and they ask; 'so what have you ever done for me?' I will reply, 'well other than bringing you into this beautiful world, and giving you my untiring love, I also taught you how to swim, and one final thing, I would always made you laugh when I put goose fat onto my hair!'

Regards

Mark

Thank You

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FRENZY by Mark King
ISBN 9781846248771




What a response I received concerning my posting titled The Conspiracy and I wanted to say 'Thank You' to all who made contact from the around the world via my email address listed at the top of this page. The U.K, America, Canada, Germany, Russia, China, France, South America, my blog is truly global, and after my comments about the terrible Tsunami that hit Japan it has now gone ballistic there too.

I have been asked (or advised) why I don't try and make money out of my thrice weekly posting through advertising etc.

Well I can tell you that I have never made a penny, my thoughts are my own and belong to no one but me. I freely mention organisations, companies, services or individuals because I'm sharing my life with you, and if I find something interesting then I like to share it with all the people around the world who regularly read always-hanging-around.

I first started my blog because I wanted to keep on meeting new people once I had left the world of paid employment. I didn't want to end up shut up in my room all day slowly loosing contact with the daily rhythms of life. I knew I wouldn't be able to afford my passion for travelling abroad; to experience new cultures for a good few years as I conserved every penny I had on paying for just the bare necessities in life like food, heating, water etc.

The only liberty I have taken is in mentioning my new book FRENZY, but without this there would have been no blog. If I hadn't risked it all to become a published author I would still be earning a living wage although stuck in a world of endless grey clouds.

So the only conspiracy are the ones our leaders hide from us as they weave their web of lies, and decent, to keep us in our place, but even they will fall if the tale told in FRENZY was to come true.

Regards

Mark